Tip Of The Day - How To Decorate Your Baby's Unisex Nursery

It's lovely to wait until the moment of birth to find out if you're having a boy or a girl, but in the meantime, what colour are you going to paint the nursery? What do you do if you want to get the nursery ready, but you don't know what flavour of baby you're having?

Karen Haller is an interior designer and expert in colour psychology, specialising in eco-friendly, toxin-free rooms. She blends holistic interior design practices with modern day living, to create a harmonious environment. These are her tips for how new parents can create the perfect nursery when they don't know what they are having:

The single most distinguishing feature of a room that shows whether there is a baby boy or girl is the colour. We have all been conditioned to think pink for girls and blue for boys. If you want to use colours that can be used for either boys or girl think along the lines of soft, pale purples (lilac), yellows (creams), and soft, pale greens.

In colour psychology terms these colours are also very beneficial to your child. Soft, pale green calms, providing balance, cream is connected to emotions and lilacs to the spirit. As the child's vibration is soft and gentle, so are the colours used. When looking to use a combination of these colours, remember to keep colours from the same tonal group i.e. warm, clear and delicate.

Infants' eyes are more attracted to stark contrasts and bright colours, but this will over-stimulate when they want to sleep and dream. So if you do choose these colours in any toys remember to put them away before your baby is ready to sleep.

When it comes to styles of furniture, blinds, bed linen, toys, look out for those pieces that don't scream out boy or girl. These again can relate to colour, but also to themes. Gender neutral themes can be found in nature such as animals and plants or in shapes. Themes relating to films and their characters can date very quickly.

Other points to take into consideration when creating the nursery are:

Try to limit the amount of electronics in the baby's room as they emit unhealthy levels of EMFs (electromagnetic frequencies). If you use an electronic monitor, best to keep it at least three feet away from the cot
Ideally you will want to reduce the toxicity levels in the room. The average home has a higher toxicity level than outdoors. Where possible use eco-friendly products when cleaning the room and washing the linen. This includes using paints that have been specifically developed to tackle the environmental and health issues arising from standard paints.

Open the window regularly to allow fresh air into the room.
Keep the room free from clutter which will allow the air to circulate freely throughout the room.

Remove any artificial air fresheners. Use appropriate essential oils – just a dab on the light bulb.

Think safety. Ensure everything has a place and is in its place. You will already have your hands full - you won't want to be rummaging around trying to find things.

One of biggest havens for mould and dust mites is in the carpets. If you were thinking of changing the flooring, now is the time to remove the carpet and replace with easy to clean flooring.
Diffused, soft lighting is best. Blinds allow you to adjust to the correct light level depending on the time of day and the baby's needs.

Keep the area around the cot free from stimulation; remove mobiles and other distractions to allow ease of sleep.

Find out more here about how Karen can help you create a healthy children's room.

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